Re: Wanted - 17\" BRM Wheels
I have just received a set of BRM replica wheels from Roaring Forties in Australia and thought I might be able to contribute to this thread. My story is that I traded my 16" BRM replica wheels back to RF because I decided to go with Gulf flares and was unable to find a rear tire wider than 255. Here's a picture of my old wheels:
Here are the new 17" wheels fresh from Australia:
These wheels are 17" x 11" (rear) and 17" x 8" (front). The rear wheels weigh 30.5 pounds each, and the fronts weigh 23.5 pounds each. When adding the weight of the wheels to the weight of the hub adapters, I think the entire assembly is pretty darn heavy. Should I ever get serious about wringing the best performance out of my car on track, I will ditch the pin-drive adapters and buy some CCW wheels, and save some 50-60 pounds of rotating, unsprung weight in the process.
While these wheels are well constructed and I believe Robert Logan did a great job working with me to get me these wheels, it is my opinion after receiving them that these BRM replicas just don't look right in the 17" size. The hub design appears unchanged from that of the original 15" wheel, but it gets lost in the extra meat required to fit it into a 17" rim. Here's another picture that better illustrates what I'm talking about:
Note how wide the ring around the spokes is, and compare it to the picture of the 16" wheels. Also note how the machined surface of the ring departs from a true circle at each of the cast spokes. I dropped the wheels off today for finishing, painting and clearcoating and the proprieter of the shop talked me out of polishing the ring outside the spokes the way my 16" wheels were finished. Instead, the hub and spokes will be painted right up to the rim. I think this will make the wheels look a little better when the interior is all the same finish.
My recommendation to anyone who is considering 17" BRM replica wheels is to see if you can find a manufacturer who has made a new casting of the hub and spokes that extends beyond the original 15" design and is better suited for a 17" wheel.
BTW, the Jongbloed 17x11 weighs 16 pounds. Hard to beat that.